An oil tanker suddenly exploded and burst into flames, killing two people aboard and injuring two others at a port in southern Vietnam last night.

Witnesses said they heard a loud explosion from the anchored tanker Song Tien 26 in Cogido Port, Bien Hoa City, at around 8 p.m. The ship, which was carrying about 630 cubic meters of oil, was pumping out its load at that time.

As fire spread on the tanker, the captain managed to drive it out of the port towards a small islet in the Dong Nai River, some witnesses said. According to Tuoi Tre Newspaper, however, another boat pushed the tanker out of the port.

Leaked oil from the tanker caused huge flames on the river surface.

Fireboats put out the fire at 10.30 p.m. and found two bodies on the tanker.

Two others who escaped the fire was rushed to hospital with severe body burns.

An investigation in the cause of the fire is ongoing, local police said.

In related news, another fire burnt down 6,000 square meters of workshop, storage and facilities of a paper company last night in the northern province of Bac Ninh, causing losses of hundreds of billions.

No one was injured since all workers were off for the national holiday, except for the guards who managed to escape the fire, police said.